Cole helps write song for local film production

Tom Cole helped write a song that will used in an upcoming film. The Blade/Jetta Fraser

Tom Cole has worn many hats during his working career in the Toledo area: football coach, teacher, broadcaster, and children’s book author.

He’s added another job description to his resume: songwriter.

Cole has been an on-air talent since day one of the Buckeye Cable Sports Network (BCSN).

Cole recently collaborated with local singer/​songwriter Jaime Mills, and came up with “Hard Heart,” which is a song scheduled to be on a soundtrack for a still-in-development movie, The Perfect Season.

The motion-picture project is a drama about the Toledo Troopers, the a women’s professional football team that won seven consecutive championships and finished 47-1 over seven years in the 1970s.

Cole, 63, a St. John’s Jesuit and Ohio Wesleyan graduate, writes songs as a hobby, and decided one evening to create a song for the movie after it occurred to him the film might need a title track.

In a short time, he had a few lyrics: “It takes a hard heart to play the game. It’s not for the money. It’s not for the fame.”

It wasn’t long before Cole had a completed work, which he presented to Mills, who Cole said has a deep and rich “Bob Seger-like” singing voice.

Mills read the lyrics and offered some of his own before recording the song, which has a ’70s country rock sound.

Cole presented the song to people involved with the movie, and they liked it and plan to have it among a list of songs for the soundrack.

Co-writing the song with Mills has led to them becoming songwriting partners who have signed with a music rights management group.

“It all came from writing some song lyrics on a folder,” Cole said.

“It just shows that sometimes following through on something, great things can happen with it.”

Mills, 44, works full time as a singer and averages between “275 to 290” show dates a year.

To think his music could end up in a movie has him thrilled about the possibility.

“Whenever you can get a song on a movie soundtrack, that’s a huge boost to your career,” Mills said. “I’m very excited about the prospects.”

Mills released an album, Long Hard Road, earlier this year, and “Hard Heart” is among the songs.